Closure for a doll with keepsake photo

ABSTRACT

The closure for a doll with keepsake photo is a closure for closing a filling opening in a stuffed toy. In a stuffed toy constructed of a fabric shell with a hollow interior, a filling conduit is joined to the fabric shell adjacent to a filling opening in the fabric shell. The filling conduit is in communication with the hollow interior of the fabric shell for the insertion into the fabric shell of a filling material. Sealing flaps, having a pocket for receiving a keepsake, are disposed on the filling conduit, and coated with a heat-activated adhesive for sealing the filling conduit closed. Outer closure ties are attached to the fabric shell surrounding the filling opening. The outer closure ties can be tied together to close the filling opening. When the closure is located on the front of a doll, the resulting knot gives the appearance of the dolls bellybutton.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to stuffed children's toys. Morespecifically, the invention is a closure for a doll with a keepsakephoto. An opening in the doll, used to fill the doll with a fillingmaterial, is closed by closure ties that, when tied, give the appearanceof an anatomical feature such as a navel.

2. Description of the Related Art

Stuffed toys such as animals and dolls have been popular with childrenfor many years. Children might collect many stuffed animals and dolls,and keep them as sentimental keepsakes into adulthood.

Stuffed toys typically have a fabric shell, with a hollow interior, thatis made in the shape of an animal, a baby, or some other figure. Thehollow interior is filled with a soft stuffing material such as foambefore the fabric shell is sealed shut. It is common for stuffed toys tobe manufactured with an opening left in the fabric shell through whichthe stuffing may be added later. An advantage of this is that the shellsmay be shipped less expensively, weighing less and taking less spacethan the filled stuffed toy. Additionally, the empty, fillable, stuffedtoy shells lend readily to the retail sale of “make it yourself” stuffedtoys, where children and other customers select a stuffed toy shell,fill it, and customize their stuffed toy with clothes, decorations, andother finishes.

Once the toy has been filled, of course, it must be sealed closed. Avariety of closures have been used. Some stuffed toys are sewn shut,while hook and loop fasteners, buttons, zippers, or other closure meansseal others. Sewing the toy closed has the advantage that the toy cannotbe opened and it's stuffing spilled out. With a closure that can bereopened, such as hook and loop fasteners, buttons, and zippers, a childcould open her toy and spill out the stuffing. In particular when a toywas originally stuffed by a machine, the child or parent's attempt tore-stuff the toy may leave the toy permanently disfigured. However, anadvantage of a closure that is readily reopened is that a keepsake maybe secreted inside of the toy and retrieved, perhaps years later, toprovide a warm and sentimental memory.

Stuffed toys have been provided with dual closures, having an innerclosure to retain a stuffing material and an outer closure to give thetoy a more finished look. Generally, a filling tube is affixed to anopening in the toy's fabric shell, the filling tube being made of afabric or cloth. A means to close the filling tube, such as hook andloop fasteners or a drawstring, is provided to close the filling tube.Additionally, a separate means is provided to close the opening in thefabric shell. Often, this closure is a zipper or Velcro. Such a dualclosure provides the ability to open the toy's fabric shell withoutspilling the stuffing material. However, because the filling tube istypically uses a closure that is readily re-opened, the possibilityremains that a child could open up her stuffed toy and spill out thestuffing.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,527,617, issued on Mar. 4, 2003 to L. Capozzi et al.,discloses a stuffed toy and a method of making a personalized stuffedtoy. The toy comprises a fabric outer shell, with an opening forfilling. A flexible conduit is secured to the outer shell, adjacent tothe opening. The opening in the outer shell is closed by a lock-stitchor hook and loop fasteners, while the flexible conduit is closed by alock-stitch or a zipper.

U.S. Patent Application Publication 2003/0027487 of J. Haug, publishedon Feb. 6, 2003, discloses a drawstring closure for a stuffed toy. Anopening in the toy's fabric shell is simply drawn shut with adrawstring.

U.S. Pat. No. 2,347,405, issued on Sep. 24, 1942 to G. Ford, disclosesanother stuffed doll having an opening for stuffing the doll that isclosed with a drawstring.

U.S. Patent 2001/0046828 of M. Morris, published on Nov. 29, 2001,discloses a doll having a self-contained storage compartment used tostore accessories such as doll clothes. The doll is molded from a softand liable plastic, material with a hollow interior, and has an openinginto the hollow interior. A piece of plastic or fabric covers theopening, and is held closed by hook and loop fasteners, buttons, snaps,or a zipper.

U.S. Patent Application Publication 2002/0168919 of J. Perkins,published on Nov. 14, 2002, discloses a plush toy with en embeddedprize. A prize is contained inside of the stuffed toy along with thetoy's filling.

None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or incombination, is seen to describe the instants invention as claimed. Thusa closure for a doll with a keepsake photo solving the aforementionedproblems is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The closure for a doll with keepsake photo is a dual closure for astuffed doll or toy that includes a holder for a keepsake such as aphoto.

The present invention includes a stuffed doll or stuffed toy made of anumber of pieces of cloth, sewn together to form a fabric shell with ahollow interior. The fabric shell has the shape of a doll, animal orother figure. An opening is left through the outer shell, through whicha filling material may be added to the interior.

A filling conduit is affixed to the fabric shell around the opening. Thefilling conduit is essentially a tube formed of fabric, with one end ofthe tube fastened to the shell and the other end left open. Thus, afilling material may be inserted into the interior of the fabric shellthrough the filling conduit.

Cloth tabs, coated on one side with a head-activated adhesive, areaffixed to the end of the filling conduit so that, after the toy hasbeen filled, heat-sealing the tabs together securely closes the fillingconduit. One or more of the tabs may have a clear pocket where amemento, such as a photo of a child, may be held. Thus, as a personparticipates in the making of their personalized doll, a photo or otherkeepsake may be placed inside to provide a future sentimental memory.

With the filling conduit sealed closed, the filling conduit may betucked inside the doll, through the opening in the fabric shell. Thisleaves the opening in the fabric shell to be closed. One way to holdclosed the opening in the fabric shell is with hook and loop fasteners.Another approach, especially where the stuffed toy is a baby doll, usesclosure ties that, when tied together, form a knot. With the closurelocated on the front of a stuffed baby doll, the knot gives theappearance of the baby's navel or bellybutton.

Accordingly, it is a principal object of the invention to provide aclosure for a doll with keepsake photo that securely retains fillingmaterial within the interior of a stuffed toy.

It is another object of the invention to provide a closure for a dollwith keepsake photo that securely retains filling material within theinterior of a stuffed toy while allowing access through the outer shellto a keepsake stored within the stuffed toy.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a closure for a dollwith keepsake photo that includes an inner closure for securelyretaining filling material and an outer closure for accessing akeepsake.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a closure for a dollwith keepsake photo that includes an inner closure for securelyretaining filling material and an outer closure that has the appearanceof a navel.

It is an object of the invention to provide improved elements andarrangements thereof for the purposes described which is inexpensive,dependable and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.

These and other objects of the present invention will become readilyapparent upon further review of the following specification anddrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of stuffed doll having a closure for a dollwith keepsake photo according to the present invention, with an outerclosure knotted to give the appearance of a navel.

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a stuffed doll having an alternateembodiment of the closure for a doll with keepsake photo according tothe present invention, wherein a button is affixed to a hook and loopfastener outer closure to give the appearance of a navel.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a stuffed doll having a closure for adoll with keepsake photo according to the present invention, showing afilling conduit and outer closure ties.

FIG. 3 is a fragmented perspective view of a stuffed doll 100 having aclosure for a doll with keepsake photo according to the presentinvention, showing the filling conduit in greater detail.

FIG. 4A is a perspective view of a stuffed doll having a closure for adoll with keepsake photo according to the present invention, with thefilling conduit tucked inside and showing the outer closure ties.

FIG. 4B is a perspective view of a stuffed doll having a closure for adoll with keepsake photo according to the present invention, showing theouter closure ties knotted to close the outer closure.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a doll having an alternate according tothe present invention, wherein the closure is located on the back of astuffed doll and the outer closure is closed with hook and loopfasteners.

Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistentlythroughout the attached drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention is a closure for a doll with keepsake photo,designated generally as 10 in the drawings. The closure for a doll withkeepsake photo 10 provides a dual closure for stuffed toys andparticularly for stuffed dolls. While the closure for a doll withkeepsake photo 10 is a useful closure for any type of stuffed toy, doll,or animal, it is particularly well suited as a closure for a stuffeddoll. The closure for a doll with keepsake photo 10 is illustrated in astuffed doll, the stuffed doll being designated generally as 20 in thedrawings.

Turning to FIG. 1, a stuffed doll 20 is typically formed from a numberof pieces of fabric that are sewn together to form, a fabric shell 22with a hollow interior. The fabric shell 22 20 has the outwardappearance of a doll, typically a human child or infant. A fillingopening 24 is left in the fabric shell 22, through which a fillingmaterial may be placed inside the fabric shell 22. In the preferredembodiment of the closure for a doll with keepsake photo 10 seen in FIG.1, with the stuffed doll 20 in a completely assembled state, the closurefor a doll with keepsake photo 10 is formed on the front of the stuffeddoll 20 generally in the area of the “belly” of the stuffed doll sothat, when closed, the closure for a doll with keepsake photo 101 willappear to be the doll's “belly button”. An outer closure is formed by apair of outer closure ties 30 that are secured to the fabric shell 22along the edges of the filling opening 24. The outer closure ties 30 aretied together to form a knot 32, drawing the outer closure ties 30together to close the filling opening 24. Loose ends of the outerclosure ties 30 are trimmed from the knot 32, leaving the knot 32 toprovide the appearance of the doll's belly button.

In an alternative embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1A, the filling opening24 is closed by hook and loop fasteners, and a button 34, affixed to thefabric shell 22 adjacent to the filling opening 24, serves as the doll'sbelly button.

Referring to FIG. 2, the preferred embodiment of the closure for a dollwith keepsake photo 10 is seen in greater detail. A filling conduit 40,which is a tube formed of a fabric, is joined at one end to the fabricshell 22 around the filling opening 24. Sealing flaps 42 are disposed onthe other end of the filling conduit 40. The sealing flaps 42 areconstructed of a heavy fabric, or other suitable material, and may befashioned in any decorative shape such as the flower shape illustratedin FIG. 2. The outer closure ties 30 are affixed to the fabric shell 22around the filling opening 24, surrounding the filling conduit 40. Theouter closure ties 30 are strips of fabric, and preferably alightweight, pliable fabric such as nylon.

The filling conduit 40 is seen in greater detail in FIG. 3. The fillingconduit 40, made from a fabric material such as nylon, is incommunication with the interior of the fabric shell 22 so that a fillingmaterial may be passed through the filling conduit and into the fabricshell 22, filling the stuffed doll 20. The sealing flaps 42, shown herein a decorative heart shape, have a heat-activated adhesive coated onone side, so that the filling conduit 40 may be sealed closed byheat-sealing the sealing flaps 42 together. Additionally, a pocket flap44, is disposed on one or more of the sealing flaps 42 to form a pocketfor receiving a photo or other memento. The pocket flap 44 is preferablymade of a transparent material, such as transparent plastic.

After the stuffed doll 20 is filled, the filling conduit 40 is sealedclosed by using a heat source, such as an iron, to activate theheat-activated adhesive and bond the sealing flaps 42 together.

Turning now to FIG. 4A, the filling conduit 40 is tucked inside of thefabric shell 22 through the filling opening 24 after it is sealedclosed, leaving the outer closure ties 30 to be tied together to closethe filling opening 24. With the stuffed doll just “born” through theprocess of filling it, sealing closed the filling conduit 40, andtucking away the filling conduit 40, the remaining outer closure ties 30resemble an umbilical cord that may be tied and cut. FIG. 4B shows thestuffed doll 20 with the outer closure ties 30 tied together into a knot32, closing the filling opening 24. The loose ends of the outer closureties 30 may now be cut to leave knot 32 as the stuffed doll's bellybutton.

In an alternate embodiment of the closure for a doll with keepsake photo10, illustrated in FIG. 5, the outer closure ties 30 are eliminated.Hook and loop fastener strips 46 (only one seen) are disposed on thefilling conduit 40. The strips are located on the outside of the fillingconduit 40 as the filling conduit 40 is extended from the fabric shell20, and are adjacent to the edges of the filling opening 24. Arranged inthis manner, the hook and loop strips 46 are brought together when thefilling conduit 40 is tucked through the filling opening 24 and into thefabric shell 22, turning the filling conduit inside out. With thefilling conduit 40 tucked through the filling opening 24, the hook andloop strips are brought face-to face to seal the filling opening 24closed.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to theembodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodimentswithin the scope of the following claims.

1. A closure for a doll with keepsake photo, comprising: a fabric shellhaving a filling opening defined therein, the fabric shell having ahollow interior, the filling opening being in communication with thehollow interior of the fabric shell; a filling conduit having a free endand a secured end, the secured end being secured to said fabric shelladjacent to said filling opening, the free end being in communicationwith said hollow interior through the filling conduit and through thefilling opening; and a plurality of sealing flaps disposed on the freeend of said filling conduit, the sealing flaps being coated with aheat-activated adhesive; whereby said fabric shell is adapted forreceiving a filling material inserted through said filling conduit intosaid hollow interior of said fabric shell, said filling conduit beingsealed closed by heating said sealing flaps in order to bond saidsealing flaps together.
 2. The closure for a doll with keepsake photoaccording to claim 1, further comprising a pocket flap disposed on atleast one of said plurality of sealing flaps, the pocket flap forming apocket for receiving a keepsake.
 3. The closure for a doll with keepsakephoto according to claim 2, wherein said pocket is dimensioned andconfigured for receiving a photo.
 4. The closure for a doll withkeepsake photo according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of sealingflaps consists of two sealing flaps.
 5. The closure for a doll withkeepsake photo according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality ofouter closure ties, the outer closure ties being secured to said fabricshell adjacent to said filling opening.
 6. The closure for a doll withkeepsake photo according to claim 5, wherein said plurality of outerclosure ties are made of a lightweight flexible fabric.
 7. The closurefor a doll with keepsake photo according to claim 6, wherein saidplurality of outer closure ties consists of two closure ties.
 8. Theclosure for a doll with keepsake photo according to claim 1, furthercomprising first and second strips of hook an loop fastening material,said strips being disposed on an outer surface of said filling conduitas said filling conduit is extended outward from said fabric shell, saidstrips being adjacent to an edge of said opening.